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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372811">hope seems so far away</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/okayish_essence/pseuds/okayish_essence'>okayish_essence</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Voltron: Legendary Defender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Beating, Blue Paladin Lance (Voltron), Champion Shiro (Voltron), Cussing, Druids, Flashbacks, Foster Kid Keith (Voltron), Galra Empire, Galra Keith (Voltron), Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Half-Galra Keith (Voltron), Hunk (Voltron) Has Anxiety, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt Lance (Voltron), Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Isolation, Keith (Voltron) Has Abandonment Issues, Keith (Voltron) Has Issues, Keith is a kit, Kit - Freeform, Lance (Voltron) Needs a Hug, Mentions Torture, Mild Language, Minor Violence, Nonbinary Pidge | Katie Holt, OC Galra, POV Hunk (Voltron), POV Keith (Voltron), POV Lance (Voltron), POV Pidge | Katie Holt, POV Shiro (Voltron), Paladins, Pidge is so smart, Plot Twists, Prison, Sendak is a bitch, Shiro (Voltron) is a Mess, The Author Regrets Nothing, Trust Issues, Violence, Vrepit sa, Whump, YORAK IS HERE, Yorak, bc i freaking hate them, but not that kind of monster, god i want to kill sendak, hunk is bby, hunk took self defence classes, i love volnu with all my heart, lance and pidge reunite, pidge's mind is turned against them, sendak is a monster, strong boi, the galran sentries can kiss my ass</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 12:02:17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,952</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372811</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/okayish_essence/pseuds/okayish_essence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Team Voltron gets captured by the Galra, and each experience a different kind of pain...</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>112</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>128</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. the yellow paladin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>hello! an idea i got, and i hope that i can write a chapter a day!<br/>i will be adding warnings as this grows, as well as tags and stuff.<br/>enjoy &lt;3</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Hunk woke up with a throbbing headache.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>starting a new series(yay!) and this one i want to finish before dec. <br/>enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Hunk woke up with a throbbing headache. Still, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he could vaguely make out dim lights that casted the whole room purple. Purple. Shooting upright, he tried to remember the last thing he did. He was, yes, he was fighting the Galra. They had formed Voltron with success, but the fighters kept coming. There was- there was a big flash as Voltron was forced to deform. The next thing he knew he was waking up here.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Shit.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Hunk glanced around the room. It was larger than he would expect. Shiro had told everyone about his time as ‘Champion’, but this cell was bigger than Hunk had imagined. Trying to regain some control of the situation, he took stock of his surroundings. A toilet, no door, a small bowl full of water in the corner. Two sleeping pads, not one. Why would they give him two? The answer was starting to slowly dawn on him when a lump started to move in the corner of his eye. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunk did the only thing he thought he could do, jumping up and putting his cellmate into a headlock. The other being made a sound of surprise, but the tables had quickly turned, leaving Hunk flipped over onto his back. It was a hard move, one he only knew of a single person who could do it that flawlessly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Keith?” Hunk’s head raised up, trying to see in the dim lights. “Keith, dude, it’s Hunk.” He was let go as Keith stumbled backwards.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hunk, what happened? I thought we made it out, I thought-” The confusion on the yellow paladin’s face must have been evident, because Keith started to explain his recollection of the fight. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They made us deform, but we blasted through the fighters like they were nothing. We made it back to the rendezvous point, no one else was in sight! Then Sendak showed up, bringing a cruiser, I thought we were done for. But Shiro collided with the ship, and-” Keith blinked, trying to recall some nonexistent memory. “-and I woke up here, with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, shit. Looks like you know more than I do and we still don’t have a clue what happened.” Hunk chuckled a little, trying to lighten the already doom-and-gloom mood. It was the least he could do, considering all that had happened. Keith cracked a small smile. It was more than Hunk had expected.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hunk, what’s that thing on your arm?” His arm? Hunk looked down, expecting the worst, to find a metal cuff encircling his forearm. Huh. His fingers glanced the surface, trying to pry it off. Nothing happened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have one too.” Keith took his time inspecting the skin tight cuff. It moved with his muscles, as his did. The only difference in them were the shades and the size, Hunk’s was a deep and dark color and Keith’s was a vibrant hue. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you think they’re for?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No idea.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They had spent the next few vargas brainstorming ways to escape. At least, Hunk thinks it was a few varga. Nothing they had tried worked, not the begging for help or the lying in wait to jump a guard. Their never-changing environment suffocated them both. Their meal came through a small hole in one of the walls, and the nothingness happened again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunk was starving, but he forced himself to eat slowly. The one thing that Shiro had emphasised to the paladins was that if they were ever captured by the Galra, eat you meals slowly. It would help with the nothingness, and you wouldn’t get sick from eating it all at once. Strange, he hasn’t thought of Shiro since he arrived. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Keith?” The red paladin turned to face him. “What do you think happened to Shiro? Do you- do you think the Galra got him too?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, of course not. He would have gotten out of the battle, and even if he had been captured he would have escaped soon. He’s probably back at the Castle with Pidge and Lance and Allura and Coran, trying to find us.” Keith gave a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. He would have gotten away.” Hunk didn’t say anything after that. How could Keith believe that so fully? </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>After what felt like several days, one of the walls to the cell opened. “Hello, runts.” The Galran officer stared them down from his position in the cell doorway. Keith, before Hunk could advise him not to, launched himself at the alien. He knew something bad was going to happen, just watch, it would all go horribly wrong- and it did. Keith’s cuff hummed with electricity. Fully aware of this new fact, Keith’s eye widened and he shot up to the ceiling that towered over 10 feet tall, easy. He was dangling from his forearm, struggling to free himself from the cuff.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah. I wouldn’t advise that, </span>
  <em>
    <span>paladin</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” The officer spat the word out like it was foul tasting food goo. “You may just get stuck up there.” Hunk didn’t know what to do as the officer marched steadily towards him. Run? He would just get caught again. Hide? He couldn’t hide in this barely furnished cell. A sharp, high pitched whine echoes through Hunk’s skull. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Keith, still dangling from the ceiling, clasped his free hand over his mouth. Another sound escaped, this time more frantic and erratic. The officer looked as if he were in shock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A kit? The red lion of Voltron chose a </span>
  <em>
    <span>kit</span>
  </em>
  <span> to be it’s paladin? By the ancients, of course I would be stuck with the kit.” Keith fell from the ceiling, landing in the Galra’s arma not-so-gracefully. He was still fighting, kicking, screeching. Something hit Hunk in the back of the head, and true darkness claimed him. The last thing he saw was Keith going limp in the officer’s arms.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. the green paladin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Pidge woke up in a large, purple-tinted room.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>okay- sorry if this chapter is trash i was rushing bc i want to get to Shiro's but in order to have the background info i need the rest of the paladins done first....</p><p>*good fellow humans, someone gets beat up. it's not super graphic, but this is your warning.*</p><p>also- there is cussing in this. quite a bit. pidge is not happy.<br/>enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Pidge woke up in a large, purple-tinted room. It was fairly nice, with a desk and a chair and something that resembled a whiteboard. It honestly reminded them of a classroom, just missing the student desks. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Odd. </span>
  </em>
  <span>There didn’t seem to be a door, or any way to leave. They paced the perimeter of the room, looking for any inconsistencies in the smooth walls. None.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>What was the last thing they remembered? They were… fighting a Galran fleet. Voltron was forced to deform. They saw Shiro collide with a battle cruiser. There was more, wasn’t there? Pidge dug at the edges of their memory. The fighters, Shiro colliding- yes! Another cruiser had come, surrounding them. Some weird tractor beam pulled them up into the ship’s belly, and then… Nothing. They could only remember waking up here. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pidge growled in frustration. Nothing they could use to get out of here. And to make matters worse, it was more than likely that the rest of the team was captured as well. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“God fucking DAMMIT!” Pidge roared. They screamed. They cussed and yelled and let their anger flow. It was cathartic. They continued this for a few varga, creating a list of the worst words they knew and saying it multiple times. Towards the end, it had turned into a somewhat musical rap.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“God dammit, holy shit-fuck-bitch-” A screach seemed to echo in the room. Pidge continued on. “-assholes that you are!” They finished with a flourish, debating whether or not to restart the whole thing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A slow clapping filled the silence. “Congratulations, green paladin. How many times was that, 4?” Pidge whirled around, coming face to face with a large clear wall. On the other side was the face of a Galra, one they had never seen before, but could recognise nonetheless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sendak!” Launching at the wall was idiotic, but what else could they do? Sendak looked surprisingly calm on the other side, not even bothering to flinch as their fist hit the clear vinyl-like surface.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now, I don’t think that you would want to do that again, green paladin.” Now that they were closer to the wall, they could see a vertical surface to the side of the mirroring room, a cold and uninviting slab of metal. “You wouldn’t want your friend to get hurt.” The wall to the right of the horrible block of metal opened, and sentries had started to drag in a body. No, not a body, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Lance</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was in a horrible state, bruised and bloody and barely breathing. A blindfold of metal encircled his head. </span>
  <em>
    <span>So it won’t fall off during- during whatever they have planned. </span>
  </em>
  <span>It took a couple seconds, but she could slowly see Lance gain consciousness as the sentries attached him to the vertical panel of metal.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, hey sweetheart. I thought you were going to take me somewhere nice for our next blind date.” The words were weakly said, but Sendak must have heard them as well, as he turned around and punched Lance in the stomach. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pidge was frozen. They knew exactly what they were going to do, to them. To </span>
  <em>
    <span>Lance</span>
  </em>
  <span>. They were screaming now, watching helplessly as Sendak beat the ever loving shit out of the blue paladin. The sentries had joined in now, and their metal fists left Lance howling in pain. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The screaming ripped out of their throat before they had even realized they made a sound. “Stop, please, I’ll do anything! Just stop!” Sendak must have heard them, but not Lance. Lance was still egging the sentries on, telling them that his cousins could do better than that, you call that a punch? Sendak hit him on the head, knocking him unconscious, and the sentires stopped their assault.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, it looks like our green paladin disagrees with our punishment method.” The sentries behind him were removing Lance’s broken body from the metal surface, dragging him back to the wall that reopened. “You will help us, or the blue paladin suffers our wrath. It’s your choice really. We have even given you a fairly nice cell, so behave yourself.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pidge’s tongue felt like lead in their mouth. “Fine. What do you want me to do first.” They practically spat out the words, hating the Galran officer with every fiber of their being. Lance would tell them that he could take it, Shiro would tell them that it was a stupid decision to willingly help them. They didn’t care.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Over the course of the next varga, Pidge was shown how to use the whiteboard-like panel that stood to the edge of the room. They were given a bowl of food, a bottle of water, and a sleeping pallet. Bare essentials, with a few materials for math and science thrown in. Pidge sighed. They hated this- they hated this </span>
  <em>
    <span>so much</span>
  </em>
  <span>- but what else could they do? For all they knew, the rest of the paladins were dead. They could at least protect the one they knew still lived. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. the red paladin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Keith fucking hated the Galra.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hello!<br/>i literally had no sleep writing this- so i did not edit it. a lot of these chapters will not be edited. i do not apologize.</p><p>*so in this chapter there are mentions of abuse*</p><p>enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Keith fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>hated</span>
  </em>
  <span> the Galra. The stupid assholes did nothing but bad deeds, and their choice of purple as a color scheme was horrendous. Waking up in a Galran prison with Hunk was a real piece of luck. It meant that they didn’t make it out. It meant that most likely everyone had been captured. Oh, god, what if Shiro has a panic attack? What if Hunk has a breakdown, or Lance antagonizes a guard, or Pidge tries to escape unsuccessfully? What was going to happen to </span>
  <em>
    <span>him</span>
  </em>
  <span>?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then there was that guard. That stupid furry had done something to him, causing his muscles to stop reacting to his thoughts. It was terrifying watching Hunk’s head hit the floor, there was nothing he could do to help. He kept making the sounds, the odd sounds, that he had always made and always hated. It was those stupid sounds that caused Hunk to get hurt and himself to be carried across the ship. He didn’t even know where they were going. The soldier said something about… a kit? Wasn’t that a baby racoon or something?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They had come to a halt, and Keith was placed gently into another cell. This one had a mattress-like pallet in it, blankets, an actual toilet. In short, it was a fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>palace</span>
  </em>
  <span> compared to the last cell. Why was he here? With all this stuff?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry, kit. All will be alright.” The soldier shut the door, sealing it around the edges. Keith was now truly alone, unable to move, in a fancy cell. Great, just great. The silence lasted for who-knows-how-long, and stretched into an unbearable hum of nothing. As much as he fought it, he started to feel the effect of the nothing that pressed against him. His eyelids dropped, his muscles relaxed as far as they could. Stupid Galra. He probably did something to make Keith relax. Unwillingly, he drifted off into a dream-filled slumber.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The hand had left a red mark across his face. “Stupid fucking bastard. Shut the hell up, we have company.” The woman left him there, cowering in the bathroom, desperately clawing at his mouth to keep the sounds in. Just keep the sounds in. Don’t let them out. She’ll hit again, he doesn’t want that. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The sounds from the party downstairs blasted through Keith’s ears. They have always been a little sensitive, but this party was brutal on them. He could practically see the grinding bodies and unwashed hair. His new foster parents were… well, a nice way to put it would be unique. The hand was practically tattooed across his face, and all he wanted to do was to peel it off. He could still see the woman’s bloodshot eyes.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He didn’t even know their names. She only wanted to be called ‘Ma’am’ and he wanted to only be called ‘Sir’. There were no names in the house. They only called him ‘boy’ or ‘bastard’. Another whine escaped his lips. Not again, not here. If the man found out his punishment would be worse than a slap. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Keith woke on the bed of the softer pallet, memories rushing back. Tenderly, he tried to move his arm. It responded. It took all of the energy left in him to not jump up and down. A slow movement of the leg and the waist, and he was on his feet. He would never take his limbs for granted again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took a little while for his elation to wear off. He was still in a cell, still with the Galra, still alone. He didn’t know how much longer he could take the never changing silence, so he started humming to himself. It was a coping mechanism he learned in the desert. Don’t like the quiet? Make noise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A plate laid on the floor near the door of the cell. It looked an awful lot like food goo, but it was much nicer than whatever slop they had given him and Hunk in the other cell. Hunk. He wondered how the yellow paladin was doing. No doubt, the Galra were just trying to sweeten them both up before an interrogation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The food was eaten in a matter of ticks. Who knew when he would get more? He had just finished practically lickning his plate when the door opened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice to see that the kit ate his food. I was worried when he didn’t wake up for the past few dobloshes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, I’ve only ever dont the kit-calming thing once! I really must practice, I fear that I might have done too much.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The voices outside of Keith’s cell grew louder as they approached. He wouldn’t be unprepared this time, but he also wouldn’t do anything rash again. Walking briskly to the corner, he curled up into a defensive position. They wouldn’t take him by surprise, not this time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As the cell door opened, Keith saw three things. There was a new Galra and the one that had taken him here. The insignia on their chest plates were different. He couldn’t take them in a fight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The new soldier leaned down to his level, acting as if he were some scared dog. “Hey there. My name is Volnu. I’m going to be your new- well, sort of your new mother. Welcome to the empire, little one.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shit.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. the blue paladin</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Lance had expected the worst, and, unfortunately, that was what he got.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hello again! this chapter is a little short(im sorrryyyy i just wanted to hurry up and get everyone's story right so i could get to shiro's!), and the writing may be crappy bc it was rushed, but i dont really care.</p><p>*this chapter had mild violence in it(getting beat up)*</p><p>enjoy&lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Lance had expected the worst, and, unfortunately, that was what he got. He woke up to darkness, nothing too alarming. He had always liked to sleep with one of those sleep-mask things, but this was a different kind of darkness. His eyes were staring into an abyss. What happened? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Feeling around in the dark, he tried to figure out the position of everything. But there was a problem- there wasn’t anything. Lance’s fingers could feel around on the smooth walls, and he walked the short perimeter, but he couldn’t find a single thing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His breath came a little too quickly now, tripping over themselves to escape. Shit. Fuck. What happened? He checked again. Nothing. What kind of practical joke was this? Quiznak. The world of darkness remained unmoving as he ran as far as the walls would allow, and then back again. He was going to be fine, it’s fine, probably a lucid dream, he’s fine-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Blue paladin.” The words had pierced his racing thoughts. Now he knows that this wasn’t some cruel joke, it was danger. Actual, legitimate, danger. “I see you are acquainting yourself with your new living space?” The voice let out a harsh chuckle. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who the ever-loving-</span>
  <em>
    <span>quiznak</span>
  </em>
  <span> are you?” Shiro’s voice echoed in his head. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“If you ever get caught, don’t antagonize them. It can and will make things worse.” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Shit. He had just broken the most basic rule of surviving. Wow, if only his mama could see him now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, you certainly have a fighting spirit. I see now why the druids chose you for this role.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>What goddamn role? What was happening? </span>
  </em>
  <span>“No matter. You will address me as Sendak.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That fucking bastard. He was not going to call that </span>
  <em>
    <span>monster</span>
  </em>
  <span> by his name, not after everything he had done. The sarcastic comment was halfway out of his mouth before he could stop it. “Sorry to burst your bubble, sweetheart. But no.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No reply. Lance waited for several ticks- nothing. It scared him, and he started pacing his cell for a little while. A wall of his cell creaked open, blinding him with the light. He was frozen, unable to prevent the sentried from blinding him with some weird metal. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You will learn respect, blue paladin.” What he assumed were metal fists from the sentries rained on him, and he slipped off into blissful unconsciousness.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His dreams were not kind to him. Lance was running, racing along a cliff to escape a </span>
  <em>
    <span>someone</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He didn’t know who, and he didn't care. All he knew was that they were super. Fucking. Scary.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He felt as if a cold had swallowed him, shivering, trying to stay moving. </span>
  <em>
    <span>They’ll catch you, they will, they’ll rip you limb from limb.</span>
  </em>
  <span> He could feel his heartbeat in his ears, his arms pumping beside him. He had to get away, to go, to </span>
  <em>
    <span>move</span>
  </em>
  <span>…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Waking up was like hell. He was vaguely aware of something around his wrists, his ankles, his waist. “Oh, hey sweetheart. I thought you were going to take us somewhere nice for our next blind date.” Fuck. Why did he just say that?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wouldn’t see the fist, but he could still anticipate the hit. It landed right on his gut, and he did everything in his power to not throw up. Some weird screeching was going on in the background. Weird. He was on the brink of diving into the depths of getting konked-the-fuck-out when he heard it. The voice who had declared himself as Sendak said the words ‘green paladin’. The information bounced around his brain before it slammed into nothingness.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>if you were wondering the purpose of the dream- we get to that in lance's next chapter! dont worry, it will all fit i promise!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. the champion</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shiro didn't wake up.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>as always this was super rushed due to the many ideas i have!<br/>*TRIGGER WARNING: implies suicide, mildly graphic descriptions*</p><p>enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Shiro didn’t wake up. It was a strange experience. He remembered, yes, he remembered colliding with the ship. He remembered screaming to the other paladins, telling them to run, it’s a trap- and then nothing. He had been stuck in this nothing for some time, but really it had been no time at all. It was all very confusing.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He inhaled sharply. Black had taken most of the hit, but she couldn’t shield him from all of it. There was a shrapnel of metal sticking out of his chest. Crap. It was nothing the healing pods couldn’t fix.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>His comms were buzzing. “Shiro, what did you just do?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Shiro? Answer me, please-”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Come on, get out of there! Shiro come on-”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Breathe in, breathe out. “Guys, I’m fine. Give me a moment, I’m coming.” Black rumbled with displeasure. She was practactly scolding him. Wait- she wasn’t scolding him, she was, she was- “Guys! Get out of here, it’s a trap!” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The second cruiser came into view, previously cloaked. They must have gotten their hands on something similar to Pidge’s cloaking device. They advanced, too much for the lions to handle. The lions would bring down one fighter only for them to be replaced by ten more. Ande he could do anything about it, because he was stupid enough to get hurt. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>A voice sent shivers down Shiro’s spine. “Welcome back, Champion. It will be a pleasure to have you again.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Shiro had liked the nothingness for a while. It was a welcome change from the constant pain he experienced, but eventually it got stifling. He couldn’t do anything, that was the point of nothing, after all. So he sat. He thought. He did nothing, and the nothingness stayed dormant.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It had been what felt like a decaphoebe, but could have been a tick, when a sudden change happened in the nothingness. Suddenly it was everything, dripping from the seams that ripped through the nothing. It was voices, colors, light. It was emotions and memories and movement. It was beautiful. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn’t last, however, nothing that good lasted long. Once he had processed what had happened, what amazing thing just happened, it was over. He was consumed by darkness, a different darkness, a more familiar one. Sleep.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“The Champion claims another win!” The applause was deafening, but Shiro didn’t want their applause. He wanted their hate, their anger. It’s what he deserved, after all. He felt sick as he forced himself to look at what he did.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The young balmaran lay broken on the ground. Not from his hand, it seemed to be some sort of birth defect. Shiro had ended the match quickly, wanting to just leave so he could continue his plans. It should have been painless. Apparently, balmerans were made of tougher stuff than humans, for the blow Shiro landed on the alien’s head could have killed himself if he was on the receiving end only stunned the poor balmaran.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The fight ended with a brutal cut at the neck, something horrifyingly easy to slice. Shiro looked at the sword in his hand, taken from the balmaran to deliver the killing hit. It was long enough, he supposed. As the announcer sang the Champion’s praises, Shiro turned the sword inwards. The sentries were too far away, they wouldn’t make it in time. Shiro knew they wouldn’t make it in time.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Actually waking up was okay, it was the events that followed that made it hell. Shiro woke up in an uncomfortably small cage, only large enough to lay down and stand up. Nothing more. The purple lights were blinding, the smell of disinfectant was all too severe. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was never housed in a place like this, but Shiro knew what it meant. They had gotten captured, Pidge and Hunk and Lance and Keith. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He</span>
  </em>
  <span> had gotten captured. The Galra gained another point on the big scoreboard in the sky. Looking down at his chest for the shrapnel, he only saw simple purple clothes. Odd, they never put him in these before. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Reaching for the hem of his shirt, he froze. A black metal cuff surrounded his left forearm, and his other arm… His other arm was gone. It makes sense that they would do that, but what would it mean for him? They could still send him out to fight with one arm, but the clothes didn’t look like a gladiator outfit. Questions were all he had right now, no answers. He was still trying to process the loss of his arm, the arm he </span>
  <em>
    <span>never should have had in the first place</span>
  </em>
  <span>, when a movement caught his eye. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>By the ancients, it was fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sendak</span>
  </em>
  <span>. As if his day couldn’t get any worse. “I see that you are still adjusting to the loss of your arm. A pity we had to remove it, it was a beautiful piece of technology.” Shiro didn't even grace the Galra with a response. Why should he? That man made his life a living hellhole.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, you are being uncooperative today. I’m sure that it will change soon.” Sendak walked slowly around Shiro’s cell. “Well, I need to go, but I hope you enjoy the entertainment.” A holoscreen flicked to life, surrounding Shiro’s cell. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>the time is all screwed up bc of the flashbacks- but here is a basic guide<br/>shiro wakes up after everyone else- we will find out why later<br/>the first flashback was right before he got captured, the second was during his time as the champion</p><p>hope this helps &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. wasting away</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Hunk quickly fell into the routine of the Galran prison.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>HHHIIIIIII<br/>sorry if its crappy writing i did it fast<br/>also- no warnings on this chapter bc i dont wanna do that to hunk<br/>enjoy&lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Hunk quickly fell into the routine of the Galran prison. While he may not have the time, he knew the order of things. Sleep, wake up, food. Something the guards called ‘social time’ that was just putting all of the prisoners in one big metal box and leaving them alone for a while. He never saw Keith. Back to the cell, more food, sleep. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He just woke up, so that meant about a varga until food- if you could even call it that. He ate slowly, plugging his nose. The foul slop that passed as nutrition tasted like a mix of peanut butter and some weird fruit that he couldn’t even begin to describe. In short, it was nasty, but Hunk ate it anyway.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He noticed that his portions were never consistent, some days he was given a full bowl, and others he was given just a couple of spoonfuls. Why they were doing this, he didn’t know, but he didn’t complain. He couldn't complain unless he wanted a taser shock or some weird gun to smack him upside the head. Everytime that Shiro had talked about the Galra, he said that if he had stopped resisting earlier, he may still have his arm. And as much as Hunk hated it, he couldn’t do anything else but let the Galra shuffle him in and out of his cell.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That day at ‘social time’ rumors started spreading among the prisoners. “They’re going to give us assignments today,” they said. “The work camps, the labs, or the gladiator pit.” No news was good news for Hunk, so he just ignored them. Until he couldn’t anymore.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Allright, line up!” The Galran officer was a new face. Odd. There were never any new faces. Turning to what Hunk assumed to be his lieutenant, he started talking as if the prisoners weren’t there. “I want the biggest and strongest loaded onto our ship within the next varga. Zarkon gets impatient, and we can’t afford his wrath.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The soldiers walked up and down the lines, picking out the largest of the prisoners. -</span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh god, not me, don’t choose me, no change is good, no change is ever good-</span>
  </em>
  <span> Hunk started praying to whatever god could hear him, muttering short and fast sentences. -</span>
  <em>
    <span>Please, anyone, if you can hear me help, please-</span>
  </em>
  <span> Hunk’s eyes were trained on the floor, watching the metal boots come closer and closer-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You, come with me.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Hunk stumbled a little as the Galra put what looked like space handcuffs on his wrists. “Come on.” The words were harsh and sharp. Why was everything so harsh and sharp? Hunk followed as the Galra weaved in and out of the metal corridors. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>No one was in sight, could he escape? The Galra seemed to be shorter than most, but their size wasn’t always a factor of strength. He’s arm wrestled against Pidge too many times to underestimate things like that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunk chuckled. “Something funny to you?” The Galra turned abruptly, anger filling their eyes. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Now or never. </span>
  </em>
  <span>In a single movement, Hunk brought his arms around the Galra’s neck, pulling them into a headlock reinforced by the space handcuffs. They weren’t going anywhere anytime soon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hearing footsteps, he swung the Galra in front of him for protection. “You are going to let me go peacefully, or the officer gets it!” He was surprised at how menacing he sounded. In reality, he could barely hurt a fly!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The other soldier stopped, and Hunk could get a good look at them. They, too, were bringing along a prisoner. Some guy he formed a tentative alliance with in ‘social time’. The soldier stood for a moment, seemingly waiting for something. Two more footfalls could be heard now, coming from behind Hunk. Just great. Within ticks Hunk was surrounded, holding on to the Galra in his headlock as if his life depended on it. Well, his life </span>
  <em>
    <span>did </span>
  </em>
  <span>depend on it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t move, or this officer gets it!” That was really the only tactic that Hunk had. The Galra in his arms seemed important enough, like maybe a second lieutenant or something. A loud bang echoed in the silent hallways, and he felt the alien go slack in his arms. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The other soldiers were on him now. Why don’t they just shoot? They pinned him to the ground with the help of the weird cuff thing that he woke up with. Sweating, he felt his heartbeat in his ears. Why did he do that, he just made matters worse, he would definitely die now-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well done, yellow paladin.” The voice sounded different, it was new. Now getting a good look at the Galra that towered above him, he realized that it was one of the soldiers that was standing to the side during ‘social time’, clinging to the wall, just </span>
  <em>
    <span>watching.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“You just earned a one way ticket to the gladiator pit. I have a feeling that you will do so much better than our previous Champion.” Shit, was he talking about Shiro? Raking his brain for the name, the name of the Galra responsible for most of Shiro’s pain.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sendak?” He tried inquisitively.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, well, you certainly are more intuitive than your demeanor led me to believe. Your talents would have been wasted in a labor camp.” Sendak left, causing the soldiers securing Hunk to drag him along. They arrived at a ship, something that looked vaguely like the recreational spaceships he had at home. “Welcome to life in the arena, yellow paladin.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was dumped unceremoniously into a new cell, one smaller than before, but painstakingly similar. Something that he had heard described to him as intel. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shiro’s cell.</span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. intelligent mind</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Pidge used to love science and math.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hello! i'm not dead, but i want to make the fics longer so it will be rare that two or more come out in a day.<br/>trust me, if you dont hear from me in a couple days, i have not abandonded this fic!<br/>there is cussing and someone gets beat up.</p><p>enjoy&lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Pidge used to love science and math. Now they fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>hate</span>
  </em>
  <span> it. Day in and day out, they designed and calculated, helping the ‘glory of the Galra Empire’. Like there was any glory in this fucking hellhole. It had only taken a few sleep cycles for the whiteboard thing to become full of calculations. It was all in numbers from Earth; in part because they didn’t know the Galran numbers and symbols, but mainly because when they broke out they wanted them to be unable to comprehend the hundreds of equations. Thank god they didn’t try and learn about Earth’s numerical systems from Shiro when he was captured, or else they’d be screwed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now, however, they were doing something that was almost relaxing. Wiping the board clean, they had started writing every digit they could remember of pi. Pidge had just gotten to the 116th digit when they heard a door open. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“New assignment. Sendak wants you to make cuffs for disobedient prisoners. Start immediately.” A data tablet was dropped on their desk roughly by the soldier. They had only seen this soldier a few times, and every time was with a new assignment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know what to call you. What should I call you?” Pidge knew it was a risk. The soldier could bring Lance out, or tell Sendak, or anything else. Instead, the soldier gave a small smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rangon. And since I know that you humans are big on pronouns, you may use he and him.” The soldier- no, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Rangon</span>
  </em>
  <span>- walked off after that, before Pidge could tell him what their name was. He probably broke a rule telling them. This puzzled the small paladin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sighing, Pidge picked up the data pad. Make a cuff for disobedient prisoners, must be flexible and fit snugly to the arm. Must be magnetic. Huh, the requirements were never this lax. Pidge, not knowing what else to do, got to work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was a tough one. The Garrison never had this kind of technology, so it was just Pidge relying on their experience with Altean and Galra tech and their wits. What type of metal would be magnetic, but also light and flexible? They did mild research on Galran metals, but almost none seemed to fit the ticket. Eventually, they had turned to nanotechnology.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The final product was not made by Pidge’s hands. They only made the plans and worked out scientific kinks. Nothing had prepared them for the sheer beauty of what they had designed. Well, it would have been more beautiful if it wasn’t for punishment, or if it wasn’t made for the Galra. They knew exactly what type of device they had created, it’s limitations and its power. They knew how terrifying it could be. And they had just given it willingly to the Galra.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No, not willingly. They did it to protect Lance, to save him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pidge exhaled. It was out of their hands now, whether they wanted to or not. They had resurfaced from their thoughts at just the right time. The metal door in the other room creaked open, revealing a very angry looking alien.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Green paladin!” Pidge jumped at the words. “Why is it you have yet to complete the latest assignment that Zarkon has graced you with?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What the fuck are you talking about? I did that weird cuff thing you wanted me to do, the prototype is right here!” Pidge ran to pick up the green cuff. It was odd that they had made it green, but who were they to question the Galran fashion trends? The alien species seemed to finally move on to other colors after 10,000 years of purple.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, but we have yet to have a test subject.” Rangoon walked into their cell, accompanied by another Galra, one that had brought Pidge their food rations every now and then. Their breaths quickened, watching helplessly as they clamped the invention to their forearm. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Holy shit, what the fuck, why did i make this godforsaken invention, goddamn-</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Sendak pulled a remote from a table in front of him. “Now, green paladin, you will be able to witness the true depths of your technology!” His finger pressed down, and something unexpected happened. Rather than their own cuff to react, like they had assumed, someone else was dragged through the open doorway. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Lance.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>His forearm looked like it was being ripped apart from him, as he desperately clawed at the metal of the doorframe. “Come now, don’t be like that. Your visitor has been very gracious, you should show them!” Lance’s eyes snapped up. Why hadn’t Pidge noticed the lack of a blindfold earlier? Frantically glaring around, expecting something else they assumed, Lance seemed like he couldn’t focus on one thing longer than a few seconds. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pidge?” He had seen them. Horror filled his eyes as he took in the other paladin on the other side of the window. “Holy fucking shit, Sendak I’m going to kill you!” Lance stopped trying to resist the cuff now, and instead launched himself at full force in the direction of the Galran officer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sendak, the bastard that he is, simply pushed a button that caused Lance’s direction to take an abrupt turn upwards. “Lance, just stop! He’ll hurt you again!” The blue paladin was still trying to pry off the metal encircling his forearm. “Stop! It won’t come off, it’s designed to stay on at any means necessary, Lance, stop!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Blue paladin, I thought we had this talk already.” Sendak calmly talked over Pidge’s words, signaling to the sentries to come to his aid. Why couldn’t Lance hear them? Sendak ripped Lance from the ceiling, and, with the help of his metal sentries, secured him to the metal slab once again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You will </span>
  <em>
    <span>never </span>
  </em>
  <span>talk to me like that.” The punch came out of nowhere. Hitting Lance squarely in the jaw, Pidge could have sworn they heard a bone crunching under the force.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t give a </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span> of what you want, you stupid purple furry.” Had Lance really just called Sendak a furry? A second punch landed on his knee, stealing a scream from the paladin. Holy shit, why couldn’t Lance just shut up?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pidge was on their knees now, banging on the glass, trying to stop Sendak. Just stop Sendak. Tears clouded their vision, welling up behind their glasses. The ones given to them by their brother. Pidge looked up determidly. They would </span>
  <em>
    <span>not let the</span>
  </em>
  <span> Galra take another one of their brothers. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>In a fit of fury, they launched themselves at the window again. And again. And again. Slowly but surely, Pidge thought they saw a crack in the glass. </span>
  <em>
    <span>One more time. That’s all it will take to do this stupid piece of shit in. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Midjump, they saw Rangon out of the corner of their eye, along with the other Galra from before, holding a remote. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p>
  <span>They knew it was going to happen, but they still yelped when the cuff led them to the floor. As small as they were, they were still forced into an awkward half crouch as the momentum from their jump twisted their arm at a painful angle. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Both fighters, are we?” In their fury, Pidge hadn’t noticed that Sendak had changed from punching Lance to looking at them. “It’s such a shame that you have a brain that is intelligent. You would have done so well in the gladiator pits. I suppose the yellow paladin should do well for a while, but we will sorely miss your fighting spirit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck. They were going to send Hunk to the Pits? </span>
  </em>
  <span>“You wouldn’t fucking dare.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh believe me, young paladin, when I say I will very much enjoy seeing your face as we televise the fights.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>i did not edit this and i was jamming to the kipo playlist so that influenced things.<br/>also- sendak is a monster, but he at least respects pidge's pronouns</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. kit</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Keith never liked his new 'mothers'.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>okay YES I AM AWARE THAT THIS CHAPTER IS SUPER SHORT! i ran out of steam for this chapter- but i promise that the next keith chapter will be longer!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Keith never liked his ‘new mothers’. They were never nice, they never cared. Given that this one was a Galra, he knew that it would be no different. Whatever she said, whatever she </span>
  <em>
    <span>promised</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he knew it would all come crumbling down eventually. She had told him to call her Volnu, but he never even addressed her as such. As defiant as he may be, it was practically ingrained in him to call anyone who claims to be his mother ‘ma’am’. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, kit. I told you my name. What would you like me to call you?” The lady was still crouched in front of him, hand outstretched in an act of mock sympathy. Keith had not moved from his corner, and grunted in response. She didn’t deserve to know his name. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay then. If you will not provide me with a name yet, I will give you one. You shall be Yorak.” Keith made sure that no physical reaction could be seen. Reactions could bring who-knows-what, and he was weak enough as it is. “Come, Yorak. We will be going now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A sharp laugh escaped his lips before he could stop it. “Are you giving me a choice?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No.” The Galran lady pressed a button on a remote, sending him flying to her by his forearm. Curse these godforsaken inventions. “But, if you cooperate, I promise it will be much easier for you.” There it was. A </span>
  <em>
    <span>promise</span>
  </em>
  <span>. They were only made to be broken. Keith snarled at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a sigh, she reached out to touch him. “I truly wish you had done this the correct way, kit.” She rubbed a circle into the middle of his forehead and he felt his body go limp. Holy fuck, how had he forgotten about that? The lady had scooped him up effortlessly. “Don’t worry about this, Rangon. I can take care of the kit, you get back to your assignment.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Volnu, I just worry about him. The Emperor must have something planned for the kit, or he would just throw him into the arena with the yellow paladin.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We are not to presume what the Emperor wants, and you are in no place to assume things.” Keith managed to rotate his head just enough to see the woman’s furious expression. “The kit has been graciously gifted to me by the Emperor himself, and there is no other motive.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The other Galra- the one the lady had called Rangon- bowed his head. Clearly he did not like having to submit to the superior officer, but he bit his tongue. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Odd. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Keith never thought that the Galra would have doubts about their precious emperor. Just look at the things he was learning already in this less-than-ideal situation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Volnu carried him out of his room, careful to avoid hitting his limp head on anything that might be in the way. Why does she care so much? What was going to happen to him? As they turned left, Keith added to his mental map. He hadn’t been down this way before, and he knew that he might need to know it. To escape. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I do hope you will like your new quarters, my mate and I were not very prepared for this, but if the Emperor believes in us, we should too.” Keith watched as the Galran’s eyes grew soft at the mention of her mate. Good to know that they aren’t all heartless. “We have always wanted a kit of our own, yet we are unable to do so on our own terms. The Emperor must have seen fit to grant us our only wish! He is so kind, our Emperor. I do not understand how you would have gotten tangled up in the wrong side of this war.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He just glared up at her. Wrong side of the war? Did she even know what she was fighting</span>
  <em>
    <span> for</span>
  </em>
  <span>? “It does not matter now,” She looked down at him for the first time since she had started talking. “We will show you the way.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>y'all, i love Volnu- okay? she is but a victim of the Galra Empire propoganda, and she will be popping up a lot!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. prideful</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Lance has always prided himself on his control of his emotions.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>yeah its LANCE</p><p>also im sorry its a little short</p><p>enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Lance had always prided himself on his control of his emotions. He always showed the happy ones, to try and cheer up his paladin counterparts, but the sad ones he reigned in. They were a weakness. A vulnerability. In fact, the entire time he had been in the Castle of Lions, he hadn’t cried once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Well, all that went down the drain now. The first time they had taken him to that weird room, he hadn’t cried. He hadn’t done anything, really, except antagonize Sendak. After that, he was left alone in his dark room for a while. Then they would come get him, take him somewhere, rough him up a bit. He was doing just fine until a couple sleep cycles ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh, blue paladin. Have I got a surprise for you.” Sendak’s voice boomed in the silence of his cell. Why was everything so loud? Lately everything has been too much.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Well, thanks hon! I didn’t know we were getting each other anniversary gifts. You should have let me buy you something.” Dammit. Antagonizing his captor </span>
  </em>
  <span>again</span>
  <em>
    <span>. There was a reason for this, right? Why couldn’t he just shut the hell up?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It is nothing of the anniversary sort. More of the painful type, I’m afraid.” The door opened, flooding in purple light. Lance had grown to hate the vibrant hue. Before he could react a sentry was clamping something down on his arm, something-</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Aww, sweetheart, it’s my color!” The blue cuff they had shoved on him encompassed his entire forearm, and the entire design moved with his muscles. It was pretty comfortable, at least, comfortable compared to the stuff he was used to.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Sendak’s voice grew menacing. “Well, of course it is. We wouldn’t want you to be unrecognizable, now would we?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Breathe in, breathe out. He’s fine. There’s nothing he hasn’t endured that he can’t endure any longer. He repeated the simple instructions like a mantra in his head. In. Out. In. Out. The darkness isn’t moving. The darkness is still. Nothing’s there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The blinding purple light filled his cell. When were they ever going to give him a warning? His eyes were still adjusting to the light when sentries grabbed him by the armpits. Another session? Now? They really sped up the pace. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They took the familiar turns, but it was odd seeing the path. They had always blindfolded him with a metal thingy, preferring him to suffer without light. Now they were going to take the light away from him too? Then he reached the doorway, the purple doorway, he couldn’t go in, they were going to hurt him, he can’t go in-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lance’s arm braced themselves against the doorframe, ignoring the cold, metal hands that tried to shove him through. His arm started to pull away from him too, attracted to whatever remote thing the Sendak was holding in his hands. He couldn’t go in, he couldn’t go in, he can’t, he won’t make it this time, God if you’re there, he’ll die. A flash of green caught his eye. Green? Why green? In the span of a single heartbeat, Lance understood.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Holy fucking shit, Sendak I’m going to kill you!” Using the momentum from the weird cuff thing, Lance launched himself forward. He was ready to fight, tooth and nail, hands outstretched- </span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then he was flying upwards. The stupid cuff was pulling him to the celing, leaving him helpless and vulnerable, while all Pidge could do was watch. He thought they were screaming something, but he couldn’t really tell.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Blue paladin, I thought we had this talk already.” Sendak yanked him from the ceiling, drawing a scream from his mouth. “You will never talk to me like that.” Lance had been too focused on Sendak strapping him to the table; he didn’t see the punch until it was too late. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spitting on the Galra, he decided to say a scentace he never thought he would say unironically. “I don’t give a </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span> what you want, you stupid purple furry.” The fists rained down on him once again, hurting him more than he thought was possible. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lance was vaguely aware of a tuft of hair launching themself at the weird window wall, then stopped abruptly. He wasn’t fully aware of his surroundings, but he wasn’t fully out of it, when he was dragged back to his cell by the metal sentries. Curse those guys, their hands were too cold.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So there he was, laying on the floor, trying to process everything that had happened. Sendak, the cuff, the green- no that green was Pidge! Pidge was there, and Pidge had to see everything. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Tears leaked down his face, pushing away the layer of grime that had found a home on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lance hadn’t cried in a while. So long, that he almost forgot what it felt like. It was sadness and anger and pain. It was warm and salty and his head </span>
  <em>
    <span>hurt</span>
  </em>
  <span>. The tears came faster now, no longer blocked by his inhibitions. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sendak!” His voice came out raw and scratchy. “Sendak, what do I have to do? What do I have to do to make you stop forcing Pidge to see shit like that? What do you </span>
  <em>
    <span>fucking</span>
  </em>
  <span> want!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Lance had expected, the purple furry didn’t answer, leaving him to yell at the world. To yell curses at the Galra. It probably didn’t help his case, and most likely only made matters worse for the green paladin, but Lance was too angry to care. He probably should, he was trying to protect his little sibling after all, but he didn’t.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Huh. His little sibling. Lance had never mentioned that outloud, but it felt so right in his head. He could practically imagine Pidge sticking their tongue out at the thought, but playfully. He knew they didn’t mind, so he had practically become a surrogate brother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lance continued to talk, just to fill the silence. “Listen, Sendak, I’m sorry. Just please, please, </span>
  <em>
    <span>please,</span>
  </em>
  <span> tell me what I can do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A voice answered. “Well, now that you’ve asked nicely…”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. an example</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shiro was tired.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hey everybody- im not dead!<br/>slight trigger warning for viiolence(its the arena but I don't go into much detail)</p><p>this is the chapter that spawned the fic, so I really hope you enjoy</p><p>love yall so much<br/>thanks for bearing with me<br/>enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Shiro was tired. The last few days (Weeks? Months? He didn’t even know anymore.) had been emotionally taxing. He couldn’t do anything as he watched Pidge helplessly pace their cell. He couldn’t do anything as he saw Keith go limp in some Galran woman’s arms. He couldn’t do anything as he watched Lance get hurt over and over again. He couldn’t do anything as he watched Hunk fight through a panic attack, locked up in his old cell. He couldn’t do </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shiro hadn’t seen Sendak since he woke up, and he had no desire to see him again, but anything would be better than this everlasting nothing. The holograms that surrounded his cage never shut off, and more often than not he was woken up by screams. Screams from people he couldn’t protect. Screams from people he </span>
  <em>
    <span>should have</span>
  </em>
  <span> been able to protect. Guess that was the point. Show him how weak he was, how he couldn’t change their fates.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was intently watching Pidgee build something, trying to piece together what it was, when he heard a voice that was all too familiar. “Welcome, Champion. I trust you’ve enjoyed your stay?” Shiro spun around a little too fast, getting caught up in the loose clothing that he wore. Suddenly he found himself falling, his head colliding with the floor.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My, you certainly got a little excited for your Emperor.” Zarkon towered above him, dressed like he was going to some important ceremony. For all Shiro knew, he was. God, he hated that purple fuzzball. “Are you ready to make your debut?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What debut? I swear, could you people be any more vague? And no, I did not enjoy my stay, but I’m sure you knew that.” Shiro snapped at him with all the venom he could muster. He was just so </span>
  <em>
    <span>tired</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “So, Emperor, in short, fuck you!” It felt good to get that off his chest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Champion, I am very surprised at this behavior! When you were here before you never acted like this.” Despite his words, Zarkon did not look surprised. He looked like a cat playing with the mouse. “I think a lesson is in order.” Sentries flooded the room. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even as weak as he was, Shiro managed to disable a handful of sentries before they activated the weird cuff thing on his still-existing arm. It dragged him downwards, allowing the sentries to secure him just enough so he couldn’t move. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Champion. You know that struggling is futile. You might want to get to the destination before you decide if it would be worth it to break free.” A cold glimmer was frozen in Zarkon’s eyes. This was going to be a bitch, and Shiro knew it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had been in the weird box thing for a couple of hours. It was clear, and kind of reminded him of those doll boxes in the way it was designed. His remaining arm was outstretched and secured, along with both of his legs. Some strap thing wrapped around his midsection. He was in the box for hours, but his surroundings haven’t been dull at all. They kept moving him to new rooms, on ships, off of ships. Did they realize how much information they were giving him just by simply allowing him to look?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shiro saw very few live Galra, but the ones he saw looked scared. He was the Champion after all, pilot of the Black Lion. He single handedly took out an entire fleet before he was captured, and even then it was only as a result of a little luck. He never liked seeing fear on someone’s face, but this time, he tried to enjoy it a little. Even stuck in a box, clearly weakened and missing an arm, he could be tough to some Galra. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shiro was still thinking when the box was directed down a path, a familiar path, one he had never hoped to take again. The arena. His heartbeat was climbing, suddenly he couldn’t breathe in the box, let him out, he can’t go again-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see you remember the Arena, Champion. It’s a shame you won’t be fighting this time. I have, however, arranged a mighty opponent for you to watch.” Zarkon materialized beside him. How long was he there? “I got you the best seat in the house. Don’t waste it, enjoy the show.” The box was lifting up, dragged on by a chain stretching to the top of the ceiling. His bonds dissolved into nothing, dropping him unceremoniously to the floor of the cage.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The box reached the ceiling now, and Shiro could see Zarkon’s steady march to his seat of ‘honor’. A booming voice filled the arena. “Tonight we are graced by the presence of our great Emperor. Vrepit sa!” A chorus of ‘vrepit sas’ rose to greet the voice. Honestly, the Galra were just a bunch of adrenaline and blood lust filled highschoolers. “We also have the opportunity to see the once mighty Champion!” A purple spotlight fell onto Shiro's face. Why did they feel the need to make them so bright? It stayed for a few ticks before turning away. Great, so this was Zarkon’s game.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As it fell away, Shiro tracked it to the floor below, highlighting the arena. Dramatic alien music played, somewhat resembling some rock concert from the 80s. Two gladiators stepped out, preparing to fight. Shiro stared hopelessly. He was going to hate this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Zarkon knew his weaknesses, he knew his pressure points. The Galran Emperor was going to make him watch a bloody fight, knowing that he couldn’t help whatever scared prisoner was just sentenced to death. Knowing that he couldn't protect them. In the last moments before the fight, Shiro decided something. If he couldn’t help, he would bear witness. He would remember their faces. He would remember them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The fights were, as always, horrific. Scared aliens pitted against huge monsters, huge monsters pitted against each other, each battle messier than the last. And Shiro watched all of them. He watched as they were cut down and the crowd cheered. He watched as a fresh gladiator was delivered to the maw of some beast. He watched it all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was nearing the final round when he felt his cage being lowered. “And now, the Champion will watch as his former opponent meets her match- the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Paladin</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Shiro froze. Paladin? He knew that his fellow pilots were captured, but he thought they were all at work camps. The cameras just showed typical work camp cells- it shouldn’t be any different. His breath raced out of him, short and fast. Who was he going to watch die? Pidge? No, their inventions would be too valuable. Lance? Definitely not, he was being used to keep Pidge in line. Keith? Zarkon did something with him, but surely it wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>this</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Hunk? No, he’s a work horse, they wouldn’t use him. They couldn’t!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The purple spotlights found him again, growing hot on his back. Oh, god, it’s going to be horrible. Out of the corner of his eye, Shiro saw Zarkon give the wave to start the match.  That </span>
  <em>
    <span>bastard</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He knew exactly what he was doing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The door to his left opened first, revealing a tall, yellowish alien. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Kaj</span>
  </em>
  <span>. The last time Shiro had seen Kaj, she was trying to escape from their little hellhole, and Shiro never knew if she succeeded. Now, he can see that she didn’t, and her leg was replaced with a metal one. Casualties of trying to leave. It was how he had gotten his prosthetic, after all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The one to his right opened, revealing a lump of something. Looking at the purple clothing, it would be safe to assume that it was a gladiator, but an inexperienced one. The only paladin Shiro knew of that size was… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hunk?” The Yellow Paladin’s eyes snapped up to Shiro’s.  They were rimmed red from crying, and his massive form curled into a ball. “Hunk, listen, you’ll get through this! They usually just need a broken bone! Hunk-” Shiro’s words were cut off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, would you look at that? Our former Champion is giving his legacy some tips. We can’t have that, it wouldn’t be a fair fight!” Shiro tried screaming again, but no words came out. “Now, Champion, the Emperor hopes you enjoy this fight. It was arranged in your favor after all. What do you say we give him a real up close look at the fight?” The crowd cheered. Shiro could feel the box lowering, thudding on the ground. He was panicking now, pounding on the clear walls, trying to say something, to say anything. Hunk’s eyes grew more determined now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Commence fight!” Kaj, as shocked as she was, managed to launch forward, narrowly missing Shiro’s cage. Hunk dodged the swipes of her sword with ease. With no weapon of his own, Hunk still managed to fight back, punching Kaj in her throat. He had the advantage, flipping the tables, trying to get her to yield. Shiro felt tears leaking out of his eyes, watching this amazingly kind paladin beat his opponent up. When had Hunk even learned those moves? It wasn’t something Shiro had taught him on the Castle of Lions. It looked almost… experienced. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kaj had dropped her sword somewhere, and was scrambling to stand back up. Hunk rained down on her, from his position on the arena Shiro could hear the crack of bones. When Hunk finally stopped, Kaj’s arms were bent at unnatural angles and the ground was dotted in fresh blood.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In order for there to be a victor, there must be a death.” The booming voice had changed the rules, those fucking bastards. Hunk looked pained, staring down at the almost-lifeless body. Limping to the sword, the yellow paladin tried swinging it, getting a feel for the blade. Kaj was just laying there, staring at Shiro. She smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It would have been hard to ignore the sword slicing her head off. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We have a winner, folks! The Paladin is victorious!” Hunk’s hand released the sword as sentries came to take him away. Shiro took up pounding on the cage again to get his attention, to show him that he wasn’t a monster. It was a few ticks before Hunk even seemed to register anything, but slowly he turned his head. Shiro offered him a kind look, one full of sympathy and understanding. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunk’s blank eyes stared back.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. noble</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Hunk hated everything.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>IM BACK<br/>hey everyone! i am so sorry about the long wait, but my hope is to finish this series before 2020 is over(no promises). I'm also working on making my chapters longer, so there's that.</p><p>**THIS CHAPTER HAS MENTIONS OF DEATH WANTING TO DIE, AND SOME SLIGHTLY GRAPHIC SUFF**<br/>you have been warned.</p><p>i hope yall enjoy!<br/>&lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>
  <span>Hunk hated everything. His once happy-go-lucky disposition was gone, replaced by something much more hostile. Vile, even. Sometimes he disgusted himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The day he had his first fight was one of the worst. Was it horrible to think that they were getting easier? He could still remember the small alien, some sort of deer-like creature, shrieking when he broke it’s ankle. They talked, too, begging him to spare him, he’s a paladin of Voltron, why can’t he save them? It was a grueling experience. He supposed that was the point. The kind one is sent to harm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t kill that first alien. He outright refused in the arena, throwing the sword away from him as he cradled the panicking being. The sentries dragged them both away, and Hunk thought that it was the end. The creature would live, be sent somewhere to work, and he would repeat the process. It didn’t end up like that.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Where are you taking me?” Hunk had been dragged along by his cuff for the last five minutes, weaving in and out of different hallways. He swears he saw the same dent mark on a door twice. What were they even doing? But, sentries were robots, and did not give him an answer. Unceremoniously, they dumped him in another cell, void of basic living necessities, with a clear wall. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello, yellow paladin.” Sendak’s voice creeped up his spine. The Galra really did have a flair for the dramatic, stepping into the light on the other side of the wall. “I see that you are confused. Allow me to show you what the punishment is for not meeting the standards of the arena.” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The lights on the other side of the wall turned on all the way, revealing the alien he had fought strapped to the table. From the looks of it, it appeared to be one that Shiro had described, a lab table. The creature’s purple blood flowed from the ankle. From where </span>
  </em>
  <span>he </span>
  <em>
    <span>broke it. They were blindfolded, making panicked noises.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Now, let’s have some fun.” The knife from Sendak’s hand plunged into the arm of the creature. Again and again, he stabbed the helpless alien.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Stop! Stop, please.” Hunk was pounding on the wall, trying to find a way to make the purple bastard to stop.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Do you not like the method that I use to kill? Well, then. I invite you to come try.” The alien whimpered as the clear wall fell. Hunk froze.  So this was his game, forcing him to kill, in or out of the arena. He stalked forwards, glaring at Sendak with all his might.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m sorry.” The words were barely a whisper over the snap of the alien’s neck.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Great work! Do not disappoint me again.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had seen Shiro. It was a cruel punishment, showing him a hologram like that. It was so realistic too. But Hunk knew better. It was just a prop to add a little more excitement to the arena. He knew that Shiro had died, he had practically seen it happen. He had watched as they broadcasted his bloody form to all of the prisoners. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is what happens when you run,” They said. “You end up a mangled corpse for all to see.” Hunk shouldn’t have been shocked. In all honesty, he shouldn’t have been. He’s witnessed, and been on the receiving end, of a lot of Galran brutality. He inflicted so much pain, felt the psychological backlash. He really shouldn’t have been surprised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Paladin.” Hunk spun to see himself face to face with another alien. They all had a grudge with him, and justifiably. The creature of the day was roughly his height, with three eyes and a wolf-like snout. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunk sighed. “What can I help you with?” In his time as a prisoner, he knew that his customer service skills would come in handy. Faking a smile, dealing with hostile people. The only major difference was that he didn’t actually get paid.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can help my fist to your face!” The alien swung one of it’s paw-like hands, but ended up colliding with the wall where Hunk </span>
  <em>
    <span>should have</span>
  </em>
  <span> been. The only benefit from the arena- wicked fast reflexes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lunch was always exhausting, and mainly for this reason. “Look, I just want to eat and then go to sleep, okay?” The alien roared in response. Many backed down after that, but apparently today was one of </span>
  <em>
    <span>those</span>
  </em>
  <span> days. The paw swiped at him again, this time grazing his left leg. That was going to suck next time he was in the arena. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunk decided to end the fight quickly. You always wanted to end it before the guards got involved, or they would chant for a kill and then punish you for it. It was a lose-lose situation, really. Two jabs later, and the prisoner was knocked out. Hunk stopped to move the position of the creature, so their limbs weren’t stiff when they came to. It was the least he could do. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then he resumed eating. The food was less than appetizing. When he had first arrived at the arena prisons, he was given a dark blue food goo that had tasted just as bad as the purple one. They said it had ‘high nutrients’. Hunk never really knew if it was true or not.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he ate, he tried to not think about who he had killed. It was especially hard, because the guards tended to pair him up with his lunch buddies. Kaj was the latest, but not likely the last.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey, new guy. Mind if I sit here?” The alien looking down on him was taller than him, but not by much. They had yellowish hair and yellowish skin and yellowish eyes, their teeth were filed into sharp points. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Sure, I don’t mind.” Hunk had just gotten back from his first fight, and doing the horrible thing that Sendak made him do. He knew his eyes were puffy, he knew how weak he looked. It was never good to look weak in front of new prisoners, he learned. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The new alien sat down, twisting the metal leg in front of them into something trembling a bending position. “Neat. I’m Kaj.” They started eating the dark blue gruel that was in their bowl. Nothing more was said, nothing more needed to be said. What could you even say when you know you might be sitting next to a future opponent?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Over the next few lunch cycles, Hunk learned more about his new acquaintance. She was, in fact, a girl. Her leg was lost when a failed escape attempt led her right into the claws of Haggar, and she liked the color orange. It was around that time when she started talking about leaving for good.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You know, Hunk, I think I want to leave. For good.” He nearly choked on his food goo.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Kaj, you know you can’t just </span>
  </em>
  <span>leave</span>
  <em>
    <span>.” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m done with failed escape attempts. I just, I want to go.” She shrunk into herself, looking defeated. “Hunk, I want to die. But, I want you to be the one who does it.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The statement was a slap to the face. The yellow paladin, once mighty and kind, would be the executioner of the one friendly person he found here. “Okay. If we go to the arena, you know we have to make it a show, but I will make sure that your death is quick.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Kaj smiled. “Thank you, paladin.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had finished his bowl, practically licking it clean. Not finishing the food meant weakness, which meant death. Hunk was only a pawn of the Galra, but he didn’t want to </span>
  <em>
    <span>die</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Is this what Shiro felt like, is this why he killed? Thinking of Shiro brought the painfully familiar sensation of tears to his eyes. His hand swiped them away. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No tears,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he thought to himself. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Crying only makes things worse</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lunch was over, and everyone was ordered back to their cells. Hunk repeated words like a mantra in his head. </span>
  <em>
    <span>You can make it one more day. That’s all you have to do. One more day.</span>
  </em>
  <span> He was halfway there, guarded by sentries, when he heard a loud booming sound. It sounded like, an explosion? It was nothing, he was sure of it. Some failed escape attempt. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was lost in his thoughts until he saw an eerily familiar sheet of white hair standing in front of him. Tears dotted the face of his rescuer. “Come on, Hunk. We are headed home.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>yes.... these last few pov cycles will be the closing ones for this chapter... and there will be a lot of playing catch up because I didn't space it well and stuff, so if there any inconsistencies I apologise.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. helpless</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Pidge was quite the genius, yet they resented that fact.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>im not dead!<br/>i was on hiatus, and im also not sure when ill be posting again, but here *shoves*<br/>its short, has typos, but im really tired<br/>enjoy</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Pidge was quite the genius, yet they resented that fact. Days and nights were full of inventions, even their dreams were filled with cogs and malware, and they hated it. In an ideal situation, it would be a dream come true- but their situation was anything but ideal.<br/>	The green paladin stared at the imposing officer in front of them. “What do I have to do to make you stop this? Lance did nothing, stop hurting him!” <br/>	Fangs appeared as the officer smiled. “Inventing for the Galran empire seems like a better option, now, has it?” It was because of that stupid rebellion act they put up a week ago, outright refusing to do anything. Pidge should have known that there would be consequences. They had dragged in an ancient looking screen, setting it up in the room on the other side of the clear wall.<br/>	It was Lance. Broken and bruised and bloodied, the blue paladin looked smaller. Were they even feeding him? Sendak’s ugly mug appeared on the screen. “Your attempts at escape have been futile, and now I get to do what I love the most.” A furry finger pushed a button, and Lance writhed in pain. The strange thing is- he didn’t cry out. His mouth opened, but nothing passed his lips.<br/>	“There, isn’t that better? Your words were beginning to annoy me.” Pidge didn’t know when this was filmed, a week ago or maybe even today. The problem was, Lance was there, and Lance was being hurt. The Galra knew about both of the paladin’s weaknesses.<br/>	There was a gun in front of them. It was longer than the one they made last week, but shorter than the one the week before. At least, Pidge thinks it was a week. With irregular sleep and meal schedules, it could be anyone’s guest. Not that there was anyone to guess. They were alone in their bubble of tech, with the occasional face of Sendak(which was hated) and Rangon(which was welcomed with as much joy as they could muster). Just them, the tech, and the guilt.<br/>	Since the last session of torture that Pidge was forced to endure, no, forced Lance to endure, they had been making headway on something they hoped would never come to be. In between gun designs and mealtimes, the Galra had figured out where their strengths lay, in their hacking skills. Sendak had told them to create a virus for the castle ship. Pidge had told him to fuck off. Another video of Lance was shown. Pidge started the virus. <br/>	It was a nasty little bugger(Pidge could hardly find the energy to laugh at the unintentional pun) that was designed to destroy the particle barrier in under a minute. With the mix of Altean, Galran, and Earth tech, it was taking three times as long as what Pidge had originally estimated. They supposed it was a good thing, more time for Allura and Coran and whoever they had piloting the lions to hide. But they wouldn’t hide. It wasn’t in their nature. So the work continued as slowly as they could make it go without raising suspicion. There was no point in drawing out the work if Lance ended up dead.</p><p>	Binary code filled their dreams, dancing along the edges of cliff sides. It was nicer than the last dreams they had, filled with Lance and his voiceless scream. Dreaming was nice. But it was a luxury that the green paladin couldn’t afford.</p><p>	A jolting shake brought them to consciousness. Another earthquake? California was racked with the tremors, but they were never this intense, never this jarring. Pidge lunged, grasping for the doorframe they knew would protect them from the dismantling of the paper mache rocket they had constructed last summer. It was gone. A few ticks later, Pidge realized why that was. They were still here, still with them. The rumbling continued. Ship malfunction, maybe?<br/>	The door of their workspace blew open, revealing a familiar face. “Come with me, paladin.” Rangon’s outstretched hand beckoned. Was this a tricK? Why was he just now helping them? What changed? A distant roar reverberated off the walls. “Come, Blue does not like to be kept waiting.” A grin, the first one in forever, crept it’s way onto Pidge’s face.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>if there was any confustion in my crappy writing, yeas Rangon pilots Blue</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>LISTEN UP!!!!!<br/>there are time differences! this is put in place to show everything that happened! Pidge and Lance's chapters happen a few movements (weeks if you insist on Earth time) before Hunk and Keith's do. Shiro's will skip all over the place and the time will be clarified in the notes.</p><p>hope this helps so you dont get mad and yell at me &lt;3</p></blockquote></div></div>
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